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Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).
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The Texas Criminal Justice Council was created by an Executive Order of Governor John Connally on October 18, 1968, and later reorganized by Governor Preston Smith, on October 8, 1971, Executive Order 71-5. It was established as a result of the federal Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968. The state needed a planning agency to administer the provisions of this Act in Texas, including state-wide planning and coordination of law enforcement activities, and development of a comprehensive law enforcement or criminal justice plan for the state. The Council was composed of the Governor, who served as chair, several ex-officio members--state administrators in criminal justice related agencies, and several representatives of local governments. These latter members were appointed by the Governor for three-year terms. An Executive Director was also appointed by the Governor. In the mid 1970s, the name of the Council was changed to the Criminal Justice Division Advisory Board.
Duties of the Council were: develop a comprehensive plan for the improvement of criminal justice throughout the state; assist the Governor in criminal justice related matters; develop, review, and recommend criminal justice programs and projects for the state, regional, and local government units; oversee the administration of all programs enacted under the provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968; and assist staff in preparation and passage of criminal justice legislation. A principle component of the Council was its Executive Committee. This committee was composed of ten members from the Council, appointed by the Governor. Duties of the committee were to recommend the funding of planning and action grant applications, recommend the annual criminal justice plan of the Council, appoint subcommittees, and provide support and assistance to the Executive Director and staff of the Council. This staff was administered by the Council's Executive Director, who later became the Executive Director of the Criminal Justice Division.
The Criminal Justice Council/Advisory Board was provided staff from the Office of Criminal Justice Planning, now the Criminal Justice Division, of the Governor's Office. This Office/Division was administered by an Executive Director, appointed by the Governor for an indefinite term. In addition to his administrative duties, the Executive Director provided interpretations of statutes, both for state agencies and the general public involved in law enforcement and criminal justice. In October 1973, the Executive Director appointed an individual as General Counsel, to assist him in providing statute interpretations and in other matters relating to policies and procedures.
Duties of the Criminal Justice Division include or have included: assist the Governor in developing policies, plans, programs, and proposed legislation for improving the criminal justice system; prepare the comprehensive state criminal justice plan; administer the Criminal Justice Planning Fund; administer federal funds (grants) to state agencies, units of local government, and other eligible applicants for programs and projects recommended by the Criminal Justice Council/Advisory Board; and provide assistance, through a federal grant, to parolees seeking employment.
Types of records include correspondence, memorandums, copies of executive orders, executive pardon proclamations, copies of deeds and easements, legal records, studies, reports, and clippings, dating 1973-1990, mainly 1987-1990. The majority of the records are from the office of Rider Scott, Executive Director of the Criminal Justice Division and General Counsel to the Governor during most of Governor William P. Clements' second term. These records include Mr. Scott's general office files as well as specific subject files. The Executive Director files concern policy and administrative procedures of the Criminal Justice Division/Office of the General Counsel. The General Counsel Executive Clemency Files show the governor's and General Counsel's roles in considering requests for pardons, paroles, or commutations. Tort Claim Settlements document the pre-trial agreements reached by the State of Texas with plaintiffs suing the state for damages. Deed, Easements, and Land Patents are types of legal records that involve land transactions between the state and private parties. Grant award correspondence was sent out from Rider Scott informing legislators and their constituents of grants to be awarded them under crime-fighting programs administered by the Criminal Justice Division. The Blue Ribbon Commission on Criminal Justice was a civilian panel created and appointed by Gov. Clements in 1982 during his first administration to study the Texas criminal justice system and the prison overcrowding issue and make recommendations for improvement. Finally, the Criminal Justice Summit was a special forum of criminal justice professionals held in February 1988 and organized by Rider Scott to consider the prison overcrowding crisis. Also diverse are the many topics touched on in these records. Some of the criminal justice issues include prison overcrowding, crime-fighting grants and programs, executive clemency, and analysis of the criminal justice system of Texas. Correspondents include Governor Clements, various state and federal agencies, staff of the Criminal Justice Division and General Counsel's Office, and many other parties involved in legal activities. For related records see other entries of the Texas Criminal Justice Division.
To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types.
These records are organized into seven series, and three subseries.
(Identify the item and cite the series), Records, Criminal Justice Division, Texas Office of the Governor. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession number: 1991/063
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Office of the Governor on January 15, 1991.
Paul B. Beck, May 1991
Types of records include correspondence, memorandums, copies of executive orders, studies, reports, copies of laws and regulations, printed materials, clippings, and notes. Records are the general files of Rider Scott, Executive Director of the Criminal Justice Division and General Counsel to the Governor during most of Governor William P. Clements' second administration, 1987-1990. Knox FitzPatrick became General Counsel in 1990 but his files are not included. Mr. Scott also held the position of Executive Director of the Criminal Justice Policy Council during this time period. Files of Deputy General Counsels and staff of the Criminal Justice Division are also present in these records. Files concern the establishment of policies and procedures, interpretation of statutes, existing and proposed legislation, budgets and audits, federal funding, grants, gubernatorial appointments, contract analysis, deeds of cession and easements, and requests for pardons and other acts of executive clemency. Specific topics include alcohol and drug abuse block grants, criminal justice, crime-fighting campaigns, emergency management of environmental disasters, energy surveys and management, prison overcrowding, juvenile justice, open records requests, and the pope's visit to Texas in 1987. Correspondents include Governor Clements; his chief of staff, Mike Toomey; heads of various state and federal agencies; and staff of the Criminal Justice Division and General Counsel's Office. Included in these files are copies of executive orders from Governor Dolph Briscoe from 1973 to 1979 and Governor Mark White from 1983 to 1987.
Files are oriented by either subject or proper name and are arranged as received, in a very rough alphabetical sequence. Researchers are strongly advised to look at all the box and folder listings when searching for a specific topic.
Records present in this series include correspondence, executive orders and proclamations, and legal records, covering the years 1978-1990. These records concern the roles of the governor and the Office of the General Counsel in the criminal justice system. Most records involve the use of executive clemency: the governor's powers, or lack of, to pardon or commute criminal sentences. Others concern the execution of death row inmates.
These records are organized into three sub-series:
Records consist of original incoming correspondence received by the Office of the General Counsel and copies of its outgoing replies, dating 1989-1990. Most of the correspondence comprises requests to the governor for pardons and paroles. The General Counsel staff replied that requests for pardons or paroles begin with the Board of Pardons and Paroles and that the governor acted on their recommendations. Therefore, the correspondents were referred to the Board on Pardons and Paroles, which in 1990 became the Department of Criminal Justice-Parole Division. Other correspondence on criminal justice topics addressed to the Governor and handled by the General Counsel include protests against specific individuals getting paroled, use of the death penalty, the location of parole halfway houses in neighborhoods, crimes committed by parolees, victims of domestic violence being imprisoned, and the rising crime rate. A small portion of the correspondence concerns other legal topics such as civil judgments against state universities, proposed legislation aiding crime victims, and transferring the responsibility for the care of the Alamo from the Daughters of the Republic of Texas and placing it with the State.
Correspondence is divided chronologically and then arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent.
Records consist of the pardon files submitted to the governor from the Board of Pardon and Paroles and maintained by the Office of the General Counsel from 1987 to 1990. People convicted of crimes who sought pardons and/or restoration of their civil rights initiated such a request with the Board of Pardons and Paroles. The Board examined each request and made a recommendation to the governor. If the governor approved of the Boards' recommendation for a pardon, he would then issue a pardon proclamation. Approved pardon files include recommendation forms from the Board of Pardons and Paroles which usually contain a synopsis of an applicant's arrest and imprisonment record, a copy of the cover letter from the governor to the Board announcing his decision, and copies of the governor's pardon proclamations. These records date from 1987-1989. There is a separate file from 1990 of letters from the governor to the Board rejecting pardon applications.
Record are arranged by last name of the applicant.
Records are the case files of prisoners executed by the State of Texas, Texas Department of Corrections, kept by the Office of the General Counsel, Governor's Office, dating 1978-1990. The General Counsel kept track of each condemned prisoner's case for the governor as it moved through the judicial process including all appeals to the governor for commutations or stays of execution. All prisoners represented in these files were eventually executed. These case files concentrate on the facts and legal history of each case. Records include memos in the Office of General Counsel covering the status of reprieves and commutation requests, legal appeals, recommendations for execution, and execution summaries. Legal records include copies of trial court judgments, appellate court opinions, stays of executions, and denials of writs of certiorari from the U.S. Supreme Count. Some files include execution case summaries prepared by the staff of the Board of Pardons and Paroles that give a detailed history of the case and may contain copies of arrest records, confessions, and other police reports. Other background materials may include correspondence from the prisoners and newspaper clippings on their cases. There are no medical records or psychological profiles present. Additional execution case files, dating 1954-1964, can be found in the records of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.
Records are filed alphabetically.
Records include correspondence, memos, court records, and copies of the vouchers paying the settlements that range in date from 1978-1982 and 1990. Records document settlements reached with plaintiffs who had filed lawsuits based on tort claims against the State of Texas. Frequently, the Attorney General would negotiate with the plaintiff before going to trial to reach a proposed settlement. The governor had to approve the payment of each settlement. To assist the governor, the Office of the General Counsel reviewed the proposed settlements from the Attorney General, made its recommendation to the governor, and retained copies of some of the records for their files. Correspondence and memos include incoming correspondence from state agencies informing the Attorney General about tort claims; from the Attorney General to the Governor analyzing pending cases and judgments rendered; from the General Counsel to the governor's Chief of Staff recommending courses of action and payment; and from the General Counsel to the Comptroller authorizing payment. Records from 1978-1982 mostly include cover memos and vouchers. Records from 1990 have more detailed legal materials and settlements packets that include Attorney General's correspondence, General Counsel Office memos, and signed vouchers.
Settlements from 1978-1982 are in chronological order; settlements from 1990 are in alphabetical order according to the name of the state agency.
Types of records include copies of deeds and easements; certified copies of the minute orders approving the transaction by the Texas State Highway and Public Transportation Commission; correspondence and memos of the General Counsel with the Governor's Office, Attorney General, Highway Department, Department of Corrections, and General Land Office; and sketches and maps of the property, dating 1978-1983. Deeds, easements, and land patents are types of legal instruments that convey an interest or title to land. In this series these types of records document land transfers involving the state of Texas. If the state was receiving, granting or transferring a land title, or allowing access across public land, the governor had to sign and execute a deed, easement or patent. Before the governor signed, however, the Office of the General Counsel received the paperwork, reviewed it, and arranged for the governor's signature. Land transactions represented in this series originated in various state agencies including the Department of Highways and Public Transportation, the Department of Corrections (now part of the Department of Criminal Justice), and the General Land Office. For example, in a quitclaim deed situation the state of Texas, acting through the Department of Highways and Public Transportation, relinquishes, or quitclaims, the state's interest in parcels of land or right-of-way. The Attorney General then prepares a cover letter for the governor that states the number of quitclaim instruments, the grantees, and the county in which the land is located. Frequently included is a memo from a highway department engineer describing the transaction and the reason it is recommended. The General Counsel verifies this information, prepares a summary of the transaction, and makes a recommendation for the governor to sign. Other types of deeds and legal instruments related to land have a similar paperwork trail. The General Counsel coordinated the signing by the governor of all of these types of documents. Patents are not included in these records.
Records are arranged chronologically.
Records consist of outgoing correspondence from Rider Scott, executive director of the Criminal Justice Division, notifying recipients of crime-fighting grants awarded under programs administered by the Criminal Justice Division, dating 1987-1988. Award notices were sent to Texas state senators and representatives notifying them of approved grants for criminal justice projects in their legislative districts. Statements of awards were also sent to agencies and local officials impacted by the grant. Grant programs were intended to address a broad range of concerns: from working with juveniles to crime-prevention projects to training of law enforcement officers. Particular programs include Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Assistance, Child Abuse Counseling, Crime Prevention/Neighborhood Watch, Rape Crisis/Women's Centers, and the Texas Narcotics Control Program. Much of the funding for these programs came from federal grants. Award letters are divided into statements of awards sent to local officials and award notices sent to representatives and senators.
Records are arranged chronologically.
Records consist of minutes, agenda, meeting materials, correspondence, memos, draft recommendations, and copies of the executive order creating the Blue Ribbon Commission for the Comprehensive Review of the Criminal Justice Corrections System. Most of the correspondence is outgoing from Chairman Lipshy. Correspondents include Governors Clements, other members of the Commission, state agency officials, and organizations invited to address their concerns to the commission. Records cease in January 1983. No copies of the commission's reports on prison overcrowding or its long-range recommendations are present in the records.
The commission was created by Governor Clements via executive order WPC-45 on June 10, 1982 and charged to 1) develop a master plan to carry the state's corrections system into the twenty-first century; 2) conduct a comprehensive review and evaluation of the state's criminal justice system including prison overcrowding, review of criminal laws, deterrents to criminal behavior, pre-trial and pre-sentencing alternatives, and confinement and release alternatives; and 3) make recommendations to the Governor's Office for necessary legislation or action to promote the purpose of the commission. The commission was to consist of not more than twenty members, all appointed by the governor. Governor Clements appointed Bruce A. Lipshy as chairman. The working title of the commission was the Blue Ribbon Commission on Criminal Justice. The commission held regular meetings and several public hearings to identify issues in its evaluation of the Texas criminal justice system. Four functional committees were established: Classification and Facilities; Diversions and Inmate Programs; Laws, Courts and Governments; and, Release and Linkages. The Commission made an initial report in January 1983 on ways to relieve prison overcrowding. A long-range report with recommendations on the entire criminal justice system was due later in 1983.
Records are arranged chronologically.
Records include correspondence, memos, lists of participants, program brochures, press release, background materials, and a summit packet from 1987 to 1988. The Criminal Justice Summit was a forum held in February 1988 and designed to address jail and prison overcrowding in Texas. It was made possible by a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, United States Department of Justice. The summit included all state criminal justice agencies and was assisted by the Governor's Office, the Board of Pardons and Paroles, the Texas Department of Corrections, and the Criminal Justice Policy Council. The purpose of the summit was to assess the impact of corrections policies in Texas in relation to the overcrowding in state and local correctional institutions. The summit focused on developing short-term and intermediary strategies to relieve prison overcrowding. It also considered long-term solutions which would require action by the Texas Legislature. The summit participants considered fact finding reports, heard technical assessments from criminal justice and public policy experts, and met in focus groups to deliberate and reach a consensus. The resulting recommendations were printed in a final report. Records are from Rider Scott, head of Criminal Justice Division, Governor's Office, one of the key organizers of the summit.
Records are arranged chronologically.